Why I chose to be fat for my wedding

I love a meal overflowing with texture and taste - both are extremely important in a euphoric dinner.  I enjoy quality taste and an absurd quantity of texture.  I love how noodles and breads feel in my mouth, and I simply never want to put their tastes away.  Eating is genetic in my family; my mothers live to dine well and enjoy food to the point where they know many local chefs by their first name.  Why should I betray a family tradition when I'm planning a wedding that brings families together?

Eating simply makes me happy.  I love flavors rolling across my tongue, how Brie and crackers makes a delicious afternoon snack.  Planning a wedding is stressful, and I want all of my vices available to me, especially the delicious ones.

Not to mention, my dress is a little too big, and it would better if I gained 5 pounds - or 20.  It's freeing to know with 12 days before my wedding, my seamstress would prefer if I ate too much than not enough.  I don't think that happens enough with brides-to-be.

Most importantly, Kate will think I'm beautiful no matter how thin or fat I am.  Brides are always beautiful, anyway.

So last night I decided to enjoy my fat bride-dom and relish all the Brie, ice cream, and In-N-Out my body can handle.  I'll return to my Healthy Body Routine after the wedding and honeymoon.  That too makes me happy, but doesn't relieve stress in my current time-crunched life.  In the meantime, bring on the lemon cheese pasta and make my mouth water!

For those who are inclined to disagree, I say: Yes, I am fat.  I am technically obese and happy to have curves.  I intend to lose weight in my future, but in large part because I like how my body feels when I'm active and eat well.  I like how my mind feels when I'm inactive and eat poorly.  I often struggle between fat positive and healthy living, though one doesn't necessarily have to preclude the other.  It just always has for me.  

16 days to go...

I wrote this yesterday, but then Blogger crashed.  So posting today. :)

I'm sick at home with 17 days to go until my wedding.  So what better thing to do than look at wedding websites in my PJs on the couch?

I stumbled upon a story of two women who were married in the mid-South.  It again reminded me how grateful I am to live with people who love and support me.  There is no one who is not coming to my wedding because I'm marrying the love of my life - who just happens to be a woman.  There is no one who has brought religion into a conversation as to why they can't support my decision.  No, I've just been loved and supported and our family and friends have been overly generous.  It's really overwhelming.  I feel so loved.

So, in short, thank you.  I love you too.

My mother is brilliant

It only takes three words to demonstrate my mother's brilliance: ice cream cake.

We were going to have ice cream sundaes.  But then you get into the logistics of how to serve the ice cream (pay servers? buy ice cream scoops? and how do you transport?).  MK humbly asked us something like, "I know you two have already probably thought about this, but just in case, what about ice cream cake?"

No, we hadn't thought of it.  I'm so glad my mother is brilliant.

There's paint everywhere...

With less than a month to go, we are knee-deep in details.  But at least some of the details are still fun!

Last night we stayed up late watching Veronica Mars and painting all sorts of fun stuff involving paint.  When looking at the wedding site a few days ago, Kate and I realized we're going to need aisle markers of some kind.  We went off to Urban Ore (this amazing Goodwill of sorts for all types of household needs) and found jar lids for something like 10 cents each.  Last night we painted them green and purple, and today we're going to glue fabric flowers in each one. The lids are going to be attached to fabric, and - viola! - we have aisle markers!

We wanted to decorate the walls of our reception site, but weren't sure how.  Then we went to our friend's house, who had these beautiful 5 x 7 photos hanging on her walls with clothespins and ribbon.  We stole the idea, and last night we painted the clothespins with some great green and purple metallic paint.  Paired with paint chips we "stole" from Home Depot, we will hang wedding blessings (which people bestowed upon us when we announced our engagement) on the walls along with other meaningful decorations.

And other big and fun updates include, I had my first wedding dress fitting last week and my dress fits!  Whew.  I was afraid it was going to be too big, but when tied up correctly, it looks great.  I think it'll look even better without a train, missing a set of tulle underneath, and with a bit of a hem.  Sorry, friends, no pictures of that quite yet.  I guess you'll just have to wait for a few more weeks...

Back to our regularly scheduled program

The Seders are finished, and we're back onto wedding prep.  We've bought wedding jewelry, figured out flowers in the hair, finalized the wedding ceremony blessings, paid our caterer, and have begun following up on all the less fun details of A Big Day.  I'm over it already.  I just want to be married, in Hawaii, and get a couples back massage.

In the meantime, Kate's aunt and uncle threw us an amazing bridal shower and it was fantastic.  Kate has a humongous loving family and I treasure every moment I get to spend with them.  I had a blast and can't wait to go back down the coast again and visit when we have more free time.  One of the best things about getting married is that you get to be married to their family too.

This weekend we're going to a friend's wedding, and I can not wait!  I am excited to experience their bliss...and at the same time see what I can steal from them.

Chag sameach!  (Happy holiday!)

Chag Sameach!

Chag sameach - happy holiday!  Tonight begins Passover and Kate and I will be celebrating out unleavened holiday TO THE MAX.  It's been such an exciting (and exhausting) holiday, and it hasn't even begun.  We're keeping a kosher for Passover home this year, and that takes a lot of work.  Unfortunately, it means we haven't been doing that much wedding prep as we try to rid our house of leavened bread and trade out our normal kitchen dishes for our kosher-for-Passover stuff.  I'll be back to regularly scheduled wedding updates soon, after the holiday.

Oh, what a beautiful morning, what a beautiful day...

It's been beautiful in the Bay Area.  The sun's been shining, the plants blooming, and women taking advantage by wearing ridiculously short "dresses"*.  Above is a picture of the empty lot on the corner, full of blooming flowers.

The first day of sun, I eagerly fished out my sandals from the bottom of my shoe bin.  I was so excited to give up my winter coat for lighter sweaters and wraps.  Stepping out into the sunshine felt so freeing.  And then it suddenly hit me - this is the weather we're going to have at our wedding.  Our wedding is THIS SEASON!  It's just around the corner - less than two months away.

Every day is one day closer to the wedding, and one less day we have to prepare for it.  Instead of this thought adding stress, it's felt so relaxing.  In less than two months, no matter what, Kate and I will be married.  We have food, a place, a rabbi, and a ketuba.  Sure, we don't know how our guests are going to get from the reception to the ceremony and back again, but we'll figure it out.  In two months, I'm going to be a really, really married lady.

In the meantime, Kate found a perfect shirt at Goodwill for the honeymoon.  It says Mrs. & Mrs.

Can't wait.

*This whole shirt as a dress phenomena has seriously confused folks.  Last week someone complimented me on my "shirt".  It was a knee-length dress that I wore with leggings.